MLB Player News

No real surprises here among the latest batch of cuts from Rays camp, but Uwasawa stands out as one of the more notable ones since he signed a minor league pact with the Rays during the offseason to attempt to make the jump to the majors from Japan.

That’s at least the third team that has had a face-to-face meeting with Sasaki, as he met with the Yankees and Mets on Thursday. The Mariners and Padres are known to be making a big push to sign him, while the Dodgers and Tigers are among the many other clubs known to have expressed interest already. Sasaki plans to meet with all interested parties in Los Angeles and has until January 23 to come to an agreement with a big league club.

The Marlins needed to clear a spot on their 40-man roster to sign Eric Wagaman on Friday and unfortunately the 26-year-old former top prospect was the roster casualty. Brujan hit just .222/.303/.319 with two homers, 16 RBI, five stolen bases and a 54/25 K/BB ratio in 278 plate appearances with the Fish. He’s still talented enough that there’s probably another team willing to take a chance on him.

So it is an actual MLB contract. Interesting. No financial details were announced yet, but it’s expected to be for around the league minimum. The 27-year-old will fight for a spot in the team’s Opening Day starting lineup to begin the 2025 campaign, though his fantasy appeal seems limited.

The Jays needed to free up a spot on their 40-man roster for Josh Walker on Friday and unfortunately Danner was the odd-man out this time around. The 26-year-old hurler spent the majority of the 2024 season at Triple-A Buffalo where he posted a 3.06 ERA, 1.27 WHIP and a 36/13 K/BB ratio over 35 1/3 innings. There’s a possibility that he could pique another team’s interest on waivers.

The Blue Jays wanted to make sure they got the 30-year-old southpaw, so they gave him a guaranteed one-year deal at the league minimum instead of a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training. Walker has struggled mightily during his time in the big leagues with the Mets over the past two seasons, registering a 6.45 ERA, 1.66 WHIP and a 23/12 K/BB ratio over 22 1/3 innings of work. Expect him to find a spot in the club’s Opening Day bullpen.

It seems as though the Yankees were still in on Christian Walker after acquiring Cody Bellinger from the Cubs, so the fact that they’re still in the market for a first baseman isn’t terribly surprising. It seems their intention is to play Cody Bellinger in center field if they’re able to land a first baseman, and shift him to first base if they can’t. Nightengale notes that the Mariners, Giants, Nationals and Mets are all currently engaged in talks with Goldschmidt as well, so the Bombers face plenty of competition in their pursuit.

The two sides agreed to the pact on Thursday, but Kepler needed to pass his physical first to make it official. The 31-year-old slugger should slot in as a regular for the Phillies against right-handed pitchers, who he has been known to mash against in the past. He’s coming off a bit of a disappointing 2024 campaign though where he slashed just .253/.302/.380 with eight long balls and 42 RBI in 399 plate appearances with the Twins. Anticipate that his current average draft position — outside the top 475 players overall — will rise now that he has found a favorable landing spot.

The expectation had been that Wagaman would have to settle for a minor league contract, so it’ll be interesting to see if it’s actually a major league deal or some sort of split contract when the Marlins ultimately announce it. For his part, the 27-year-old held his own during his time with the Angels during the 2024 season — slashing .250/.270/.403 with a pair of homers, 10 RBI and a 17/2 K/BB ratio in 74 plate appearances.

The Rangers made their signing of Hoby Milner official on Friday and needed to free up a spot on the 40-man roster to do so. Unfortunately for White, he pulled the short straw this time around. It’s possible that the 25-year-old hurler will pass through waivers unclaimed and continue to function as extra bullpen depth for the Rangers at the Triple-A level.

Still no word on the contract details, but the 33-year-old left-hander had been projected to earn around $2.5 million via arbitration before he was non-tendered by the Brewers. While he had a bit of a down season in 2024, Milner has established himself as one of the stronger left-handed relievers in all of baseball and he should be a welcomed addition to the Rangers’ bullpen.